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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

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Original poster

Can you be offered 2 secondary schools?

44 replies

Worriedteacher1 · 03/03/2020 20:52

My friend tells me her daughter has been offered 2 different grammar schools. They are in different LAs, but still... surely each child is only allocated one school?

OP posts:

RedskyAtnight · 03/03/2020 20:59

I would think normally you'd only have 2 offers if at least one of them was private.

We did have an odd situation locally a couple of years ago - a new school was planned, but because there wasn't a single brick of it in existence on applications date you couldn't actually apply for it on the CAF, but had to make a separate application. So I guess everyone that got a place at the new school would have ended up with 2 offers. That's very much an edge case though!

Original poster

Worriedteacher1 · 03/03/2020 21:02

That makes sense - these are long established schools though so it’s definitely not that!

OP posts:

Standrewsschool · 03/03/2020 21:03

I think only one school unless one is private and one is state, or in the case of Redsky, a brand new school (that happened to us also).

Standrewsschool · 03/03/2020 21:04

Is she scamming the system and pretending she lives at two different addresses, so applied to two different schools (disclaimer - don’t know if this is possible).

Original poster

Worriedteacher1 · 03/03/2020 21:11

My first thought was it was just a lie to make her child sound clever (look at my child who’s got into 2 grammars!) but then I wondered if it was really possible. Sound like it probably isn’t!

OP posts:

Mustbetimeforachange · 03/03/2020 21:35

Surely that's the whole point of one CAF form, the whole thing is co-ordinated so you only get one offer.

Oblomov20 · 03/03/2020 21:37

Not at all. My closest friend, who lives across the road, has a dd, same aged as my Ds2.

She's been offered 3. Dd sat 2 entrance exams for local girls independent schools and got offered both.

And then yesterday got offered the local catholic school which is superb, which she is going to decline.

JaneDacre · 03/03/2020 21:38

There are many "grammar" schools that are independent schools not state maintained, so it may well be one of them is fee-paying not state offer.

Oblomov20 · 03/03/2020 21:40

Why such disbelief ? Oh she just said this because she wants everyone to think her kid is so brainy?

Loads of people on the 11+ thread were offered 3 grammars. And then you get offered 1 through the council application, announced yesterday.
Many people would have had 4. Or more, if you'd say more entrance exams!

Mustbetimeforachange · 03/03/2020 21:44

No, no-one gets offered 3 or 4 grammars. They may qualify for 3 or 4 of them, but you only get offered on state school. That's the point of the CAF, it's quite simple.

HelloDulling · 03/03/2020 21:46

Is one a faith school and one not? The application processes are separate so you many be offered more than one. Happened to my friend yesterday ( not grammars, regular state schools, but one faith/one not).

ineedaholidaynow · 03/03/2020 21:47

Independent schools are completely separate from the secondary school application process

Original poster

Worriedteacher1 · 03/03/2020 21:49

Oblomov, that’s different though, 2 independent schools. You can sit tests for as many of those as you like and be offered a place. This is definitely 2 state schools. My disbelief is because I work in schools and have never heard of this (but only deal with one LA so couldn’t be sure it wasn’t true if you apply for schools in two different ones).

OP posts:

Original poster

Worriedteacher1 · 03/03/2020 21:49

Also not faith schools.

OP posts:

EggsFried · 03/03/2020 21:50

Oblomov - there is disbelief because people are talking solely about the possibility of having offers from two different state schools, which shouldn't be possible except in very specific circumstances like a brand new school like some posters have described above. The way the secondary state system works is that you list the schools in your order of preference and then receive one, and only one, offer, which will be from the highest preference school that was able to offer you a place. You are talking about receiving multiple offers from the independent sector which is an entirely different matter. A grammar school is a selective state school, not an independent school, though I know that the term is also sometimes used to refer to independent schools.

QuarterMileAtATime · 03/03/2020 22:04

Is it possible that she has one official offer through the application action process, but knows her DD's score would get her into the other one if she chose to go into the top of their waiting list? I'm near Tiffins and Nonsuch and believe this is possible. So not two official offers, but could still deliberate and choose to go with the other school.

QuarterMileAtATime · 03/03/2020 22:04

Don't know how 'action' jumped in there - sorry!

SW16 · 03/03/2020 22:26

There is a difference between knowing you have passed the 11+ and therefore will be eligible for more than one state grammar, and actually receiving more than one offer on Offer Day.

Lots of the old grammars - the original state grammars - went private rather than comprehensive when selective education was phased out, but kept the ‘Grammar’ name.

Danglingmod · 04/03/2020 07:28

I think what is possible is if one of the schools you applied to was under subscribed, they might write to you saying they still had places (but you were offered a different one that you qualified higher for) if that makes sense.

I know a couple of years ago, for primary applications, the offers letter stated whether the others schools on your list other than the one offered had spaces still, in case you'd changed your mind about preference (all good schools, good area, just a low birth rate year locally).

Danglingmod · 04/03/2020 07:29

(Locally, I mean, not nationally, that this was on the offers letters).

prh47bridge · 04/03/2020 09:13

The only way this can happen with state schools is if the parents apply to two different LAs. That means using two different addresses, so one of the applications is fraudulent and any offer made as a result of that application can be withdrawn even after the child starts at school. If they have only applied to their home LA they will only have one offer from a state school.

ticking · 04/03/2020 12:53

Could it be a Mum's address and a Dad's address? or is it just fraudulent to submit two applications for one child?

prh47bridge · 04/03/2020 13:40

The address must be the one where the child normally lives. Even if care is shared equally between the parents they can still only submit an application from one address. Applying from two addresses for the same child is not acceptable.

Haskell · 04/03/2020 19:15

You'd think, @prh47bridge, but two years ago my school had two applications (come via the LA) for the same child, one from each parents' address. I happened to know the child, and her parents do have 50:50 care of her, but that still should be picked up by LA checks, surely (she has an unusual forename, unique surname, and obviously the DoBs were the same!)?
She went elsewhere in any case

prh47bridge · 04/03/2020 19:20

The LA should certainly have picked that up.

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